


Welcome to Marley's

by supercalifragili



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Ice Cream Parlors, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-12
Updated: 2015-03-12
Packaged: 2018-03-17 10:33:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3526025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/supercalifragili/pseuds/supercalifragili
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Liam looks down and then up to Louis with sorry eyes and sets Taylor on the high chair that squeaks when Louis goes around the counter to crouch near her and shooing Liam away with a hand.</p><p>Liam looks grateful when he watches Taylor holding a little spoon and hurries to the left before coming back with a sheepish look on his face</p><p>“Where’s the bathroom?”</p><p>Louis laughs when Taylor lets out a whiny “Papa!”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Welcome to Marley's

“Welcome to Marley’s,”

Louis lifts his head when the door opens, sobs startle him as he lands his eyes on a man holding a toddler, the cheeks of the baby reddened and stained with tears, a trembling bottom lip jut out and the hand of the baby stretching forth to the ice cream section.

Louis gulps because he just landed eyes on a hot dad or at least he looks like one, a wonderful dad. The tank top the man is wearing looks a bit worn out and stained with a bit of dirt, but the muscle mass on his arms make Louis shudder and the sheen of sweat on his tanned skin is driving Louis mad.

Two pair of brown eyes look at Louis in dread and the next second them man is advancing and excusing himself for the noise; some mums coo and some just stare while the man walks to the counter with the little toddler on his hip goes to sit on the seat, but decides against it.

“Looks like you might need some help, wanna wash your hands and I’ll give a cup to little-”

“Taylor” The man offers pinching the front of his white tank even though he desist offering the baby to Louis

“Taylor, hi Taylor” Louis smiles going to shake the hand of the toddler that has just stopped crying and is watching down the assortments of flavoured ice cream, a little bit of slobber leading down her chin.

“‘looo!” she screeches mumbling _sorry_ when the man flicks her nose lightly

“I’m just- I’ll go with her, ’s no big deal” the man says, but Taylor grumbles pointing to the high chair by the side of the counter struggling to get out of the man’s hold

“Tay, behave come on”the dad tries uselessly

“Leave Taylor to me, she’ll be fed in seconds, I promise. You look like you might need bit of refreshing…Louis” Louis holds his hand out when the man just looks at his hand and Louis’s own for a while before saying “Liam-sorry, my hand. I’m not this rude” Liam looks down and then up to Louis with sorry eyes and sets Taylor on the high chair that squeaks when Louis goes around the counter to crouch near her and shooing Liam away with a hand.

Liam looks grateful when he watches Taylor holding a little spoon and hurries to the left before coming back with a sheepish look on his face

“Where’s the bathroom?”

Louis laughs when Taylor lets out a whiny “Papa!”

 

*

It's a shake. Just a shake. Why is it so hard to make a vanilla and strawberry shake, anyway? Louis is good at making shakes, really good, but having a pair of brown warm gooey eyes looking at him doesn’t make it easy... it makes it fucking impossible. Louis's fucked.

"Hey, it's alright" Liam says. And Louis thinks that it's not alright, because Liam's standing right in front of him and it's fucking everything up, just putting some vanilla shake in a cup was not as hard

"No, it's not because you're bloody fit and it's fucking up with my order" Louis rushes out and curses himself after saying it looking at Taylor quickly before murmuring sorry. He picks some napkins to clean the cup and he looks at the guy a bit daring.

The shade of pink that spreads over Liam’s cheeks is so lovely and scattered Louis might have actually spilt some of the shake on his wrist. Louis wishes he could lick his face and see that pink transform into a dimmed red.

And he looks adorable too, what kind of sorcery is that anyway?

"Okay, thanks for the shake yeah?"

"Yeah, I—sorry I swear you didn't really fuck up my order, it's-whatever” Louis winces again at the curse word, he gestures apologetically. Liam just looks at him all fond for a while, eyes crinkling a little before he smiles and tells him he has to go. Louis knows he fucked up and he always scares people off and he shouldn't do that because he's nice, across to his heart nice; that's how nice he is.

“Bye bye” Liam picks Taylor from the chair and sets her on his hip, his shirt a bit stained but his hands clean.

The doorbell rings again and Louis fakes a smile before he understands who just stumbled on the leg of a chair.

"Harry, pay attention, would you? Are you working on that life insurance?"

"Louis! It's the chair!"

"No, it's you and your gangly self!”Louis retorts chuckling when Harry pouts offended, muttering I'm not gangly on his way to the counter, chucking a lock of his brunette curls behind his ears.

"I saw Payne on the way here!"

"I know, it's Friday obviously he’s here" Louis sighs defeated moving up a stool for Harry to sit on.

Somebody leaves the ice cream parlour waving a cheerful hand and Louis sweeps around a little and cleans some of tables while Harry sings some tune.

"How do you even know him? Why does everybody know Liam and not me?”Louis asks stopping mid-wipe on the table

"Because he’s bloody nice and he plays rugby and his daughter is a sunflower?" A voice says and Louis rolls his eyes because obviously even Zayn knows how nice he is. Louis knows that too; with all the times he messed up Liam's order he should have been fired.

"And he's a mastering engineer"

"He's the captain of the rugby team, actually" Harry adds "A last year too"

Zayn takes a seat near Harry and takes his beanie off and ruffling his dark hair a little before looking at him all-knowing.

"What?" Louis demands

"You fucked up his order again, right?"

"Listen you bloody wanker-"

"But you still fucked up his order, though” Zayn interrupts smirking like a lunatic and Louis would like to punch him.

Zayn laughs full heartedly and Louis threatens him to push him off his stool if he plays with his wrong strings. Harry steals a cup of Pistachio ice cream and comes back to sit with them holding a spoon for Louis to try and Louis refuses it with a glare, he’s still thinking about how Taylor can like Pistachio as an ice cream flavour.

"It's so good Louis! You should try it" Harry urges pointing the little cup to him

"You know he won't. Maybe if Liam tells him to do so, he’ll give it a try, maybe if Liam lets him lick it off his abs Louis will definitely give it a try"

"I can kick you out, Zayn!"

"Oh please,” Zayn snickers with Harry standing up to take a cup of Pistachio too “It’s true”and he laughs too, it's absurd how much he spent talking about Liam for three weeks straight. He rather deserves the teasing.

 

*

“Tay Tay, wanna try this one?” Louis points to the Nutella ice-cream.

Taylor smiles diving in her Pistachio cup and Louis’s heart squeezes, her cheeks are as round as Liam’s own and when she smiles the push up causing her eyes to squint a little.

“She’s eating too much ice cream, Lou” Liam complains from the table far ways from the counter directing a pointed look to Taylor that frowns licking the cup-side of the spoon

Liam is holding his pineapple-mango slushy and he’s still looking when Louis picks a scoop of Nutella and still puts it in Taylor’s cup

“She’s going to get diabetes”

“She’s only eating some ice cream, it’s _just_ ice-cream”

“Lou-”

“Just a little bit, I’ll help her eat it”

Liam huffs from his table and scribbles on his notebook for a while; Louis watches him while he goes through all procedural phases understanding AC and DC circuits with a frown on his red lips and tongue when it pokes out to lick at them.

Liam’s been coming almost every week, sometimes he sleeps on the table and other times he eats ice cream off the biggest waffle cone Louis leaves for him. Liam always says the cone looks a lot bigger than the regular ones, but Louis just makes fun of him for it.

"Tay Tay, when are me and your dad going to elope?” Louis whispers picking up a spoon from the disposable plastic tray

“Bah” she gargles the ice cream in her mouth, drops of it sliding down her chin when she laughs, Louis shakes his head and wipes her chin watching Liam again.

Liam’s hands are clean, and he’s wearing a grey button up and Louis sighs again returning to Taylor that’s actually licking the cup and stretching it to him; her ponytail is braided and Louis grins slipping a lock of her hair behind her ear

“Did you braid her hair?”

“Been trying to learn off of them -tube videos” Liam keeps his eyes on the notebook.

It’s quiet for a while, the parlour’s music is still lingering in the space while Louis steals Taylor’s nose and she looks at him unamused lifting her cup up.

“Mooo” she drawls, her mouth stained of chocolate ice cream

“See what you did, Lou?” Liam gets in, appearing by Louis’s side to take the cup and disposing it

“She’s growing, Liam” Louis deadpans clapping his hands and helping Taylor out of the high chair to give her to Liam. Liam thanks him quickly and scratches his beard already grown and fixes his glasses, he looks like he might need a good sleep.

“Are you sure you don’t need help with Taylor?”

“I’ve been good for a year-”

“I know, I would gladly bet” Louis cuts him quickly when Harry knocks on the door of the parlour with a bag of pastries in hand

“Hi Tay! Liam, look at her eyes what did you give her?”

“It’s Louis’s fault,” Liam frowns kissing Taylor’s cheeks, she kisses Liam too missing completely and landing a kiss on Liam’s nose, Louis smiles and flips Harry off when he snickers pinching his side. “I told him not to give her the Nutella and you know him”

“He’s a baby-spoiler, Liam, you should know by now”

Liam brushes Taylor’s auburn hair out of her face, and takes out of his backpack wipes to clean her sticky ands methodically while Louis watches him and makes sure Harry will keep himself from laughing. They’re a sight to see,’s all.

 

*

“Welcome to Marley’s!” Louis smiles and frowns at the same time.

Taylor’s on the sitting on a blonde man’s shoulders, his wearing a tank too and it’s clean-but that’s not Liam.

“Uncle” Taylor pats her small tanned hands on the blonde man’s head when they reach the counter, there isn’t any customer around and Louis is still stocked to understand where’s Liam.

“Niall” the man smiles brightly moving his glasses to brush his hair back, dark roots showing underneath the blonde

“Where’s Liam?”

“Rugby, you must be Louis” Niall smiles making Taylor sit on the counter in front of them. Louis frowns at Taylor that just looks as unknowing as he is about the whole thing and hums “Do you want some ice cream?”

“Yeah, mate, thanks” Niall holds Taylor in front of him. Niall decides on a four-scoop while Taylor picks the flavours and batting her hands excitedly on the table when the glassed cup comes in her view.

Niall ruffles her hair bounding it in a ponytail and Louis frowns some more when Niall shares his spoon with Taylor

“Are you-Do you and Liam-" Louis points to Taylor and Niall that startled starts laughing

“No! No, I’m just Liam’s teammate”

“Why aren’t you playing?”

“Knee problems” Niall says quickly finishing the scoop of chocolate ice-cream. Taylor is still trying to gobble her Pistachio bit up without managing to cough on the spoon she has in her mouth already. It’s still clear outside, Taylor dressed in a tank and shorts such as the one Niall’s wearing.

“You’ve got style Tay”

“Dad’s really stylish, yeah?” Niall checks his phone when a thrill sounds “Daddy won!” he cheers, Taylor screeching and saying “soowwyy” just after, Niall kisses her head and avoids a slap from Taylor’s spoon.

“Is he coming?” Louis tries to understand why Niall isn’t Liam’s boyfriend most of all, he tries really hard to understand how Liam that just came through the door looks still like a dad, but again, Liam doesn’t know how the dirty look works on him they way it does.

It shouldn’t work.

“Yeah, wow mate, gotta contain yourself he isn’t going anywhere?” Niall smugly infers in a whisper before Liam grabs Taylor from Niall’s lap and twirls her around

“Papa!” she kisses his forehead beaded in sweat and Niall smirks when Louis makes the cookies he was going to pack up in a box fall completely out of the said box

Louis manages to tell Niall to fuck off, but it doesn’t work that much since Liam catches him and glares and Niall laughs again welcoming Liam’s kiss on the forehead.

“Lou, this is my teammate slash flatmate” Liam introduces Niall, he’s still dressed in his jersey and still is a bit dirty and Louis looks down at his feet for a second before smiling

“You took your shoes off, what a sensible git you are”

“I’m not gonna help you cleaning, might as well try and keep my shoes out” Liam kisses Taylor’s head and she squirms adorably fitting her mouth on Liam’s neck

“Missed me?” Liam asks looking down at Taylor and Louis’s heart squeezes a bit. Niall takes the remaining bits of Taylor’s cup while leaning on the counter and watches as Taylor pouts

“-iss youu” she drawls rubbing her eyes

“Aw baby, I’m here” Liam kisses her again and Louis cleans to stop himself from watching harder at the sight of those two.

Niall chuckles and Louis pinches his back.

 

*

“I think she wants that one” Liam hums looking down at the stuffed turtle in the toys aisle.

Louis doesn’t know what he’s doing there with Liam, furthermore, he doesn’t know what he’s doing with a stuffed turtle in hand and a bigger one on his shoulder and Taylor clutching his pants with a confused look on her face

“Which one Tay?” Louis asks again when Liam comes back from the poultry section

“All” she pouts

“We’ll take the big one, yeah?”

“Okay” Taylor goes along Liam’s words and helps Liam pick the turtle, Liam puts her over his shoulders while Louis holds the turtle in his hands and wonders if they look like a family, if somebody was ever to think they’d look like a family. The cashier seems to know Liam and she rolls her eyes at the turtle toy

"I'll work a discount for all these turtles you buy for Taylor" she says and Liam shrugs pointing to Taylor that's fallen asleep on his head

"Taken from the dad" he offers with a smile and Louis wonders what other trait has Taylor taken from the mum.

 

They walk closely on the sidewalk, Liam looks tired and still hot with scrapes on his arm, he changed back in the bathroom and wore his basketball trunks and a shirt and put the jersey in a bag to wash later. He smells fresh, Louis sniff a little when Liam doesn't notice.

“Is she two?"

"In one month" Liam smiles reaching to lower Taylor on his back and holding her tight there setting his arms under her legs "She's growing fast"

Louis hums and chews his lips for a moment fixing the shirt riding up Taylor’s back

"Ask away" Liam prompts of him and Louis looks at Liam in the eyes for a second, he doesn't certainly look old-grown, yes. Louis notices it on the planes of his face, the beard somewhat neat-looking and his hands, but then there’s a sort of tranquility Louis’s envious of

"Does she miss--"

"No" Liam answers quickly looking forward "I reckon she'll need time to understand"

"You had her at a pretty young age"

"Yeah" he huffs a laugh and shakes his head "Pretty young...Wanna stay over for dinner?”

“Absolutely”

And Louis guesses this is it.

 

Liam’s apartment looks neat, cozy and pretty traditional in the setting; Louis slips off his shoes not bothering to leave them by Liam’s and Taylor’s ones and wonders where Niall is when he reads a little note on the coffee table. _Date Night, wish me luck_.

“Would you please put the turtle down the room to the far right?” Liam busies himself with clearing up a little even though off and Louis nods following Taylor down the hallway that leads to three different rooms. When Taylor stops in front of the room Louis yelps at the amount of stuffed turtles around the bed and shelves

“Got a bit of an obsession here, uh?” Louis looks down at Taylor that trots around the room, a little bed already made with a number of turtles from small to big size

“Tuttlee!” she points on the bed and Louis looks around to find a picture of a woman with a big bump and a radiant smile on her face, he stops for a second after setting the toy on the bed and holding the frame in his hands while Taylor points on the picture

“Momma” she mumbles hitting the framed glass with her pointer

“Yeah, momma” Louis whispers paying close attention to the auburn hair of the woman smiling grandly and holding the bump with her petite hands

“That’s Sophia” Louis gets startled by Liam’s voice and coughs when he finds him only wearing a towel around his waist, still steaming from the shower.

“She’s beautiful” Louis concedes putting down the frame over the headboard of the bed

“She was” Liam smiles watching him for a moment. Louis stands from the bed and somehow a twinge of sadness plucks inside his chest.

“Come, I ordered some-” the doorbell rings “-Thai, hungry?”

“Starving”

 

*

“Welcome to Marley’s!-Oh, it’s you”

“Jolly, I see” Harry says “Taylor’s here? Hi, Tay Tay!”

“Hawwbeee” Taylor turns around in her seat to stand while Louis cleans the counter after giving the change to his last costumer in line

“Where’s Liam?” Harry says holding Taylor in his hands while she plays with his hair like in awe

“Uh, just convinced him to sleep for a while, he’s got terrible bags under his eyes” Louis shrugs smiling at the old lady entering by the door and preparing her chocolate milkshake

“Lou”Harry laughs “You’re terrible, just ask him out already”

“And that’s easy…Harry”

“He looks more than okay with you being around him and Tay”

“I know. After school he picks up Taylor and manages to stay for some hours with her until he goes to work” Louis serves Diana with her cup while Harry does the airplane with Taylor on his shoulders.

Liam continues to come any day he can, breaking his rule on coming only once a week and Louis knows he’s irresistible, most of all he knows he loves to see Liam and Taylor coming by the door craving for some sweet-or for him. He can give the benefit of the doubt to both of them.

“I think he needs more time” Louis watches Taylor with a smile “A dad always needs a lot of time, right?” Taylor chuckles hiding her face behind her little hands and Harry tickles her sides.

Louis watches Taylor squirm adorably until Harry takes her down, her little blue dress riding up her legs when Harry settles her in hair arms. Louis fixes the hem of the dress for her and Taylor mumbles a shy thank you,

“Well, I think I’m going to get dicked down by his friend in the meantime”

“Niall?”

“It’s love, I feel it” Harry singsongs to Taylor while she listens closely bumping her forehead to the one of Harry

“Fucking in the middle of dinner during first date is far from love, but whatever gets you there” Louis laughs when Harry covers Taylor’s ears in incredulity

“Louis! Not in front of the baby!”

“I’m sorry, Tay. I’m happy for you”

“I’m happy for me, too”Harry smirks

“Just-how many times did you need to touch his dick to-”

“Not in front of the baby!”

Louis laughs and takes Taylor back in his arms when Harry flees away promising to come back with some pastries.

“Papa will be coming soon” he whispers to Taylor kissing her forehead and arranging her curls in a loose ponytail.

He doesn’t know if he’s telling that to himself too.

*

When Liam comes in, he’s all in a rush, cheeks red and breath ragged as he closes the door behind him. Louis closed the store a couple of minutes ago and messed about with Taylor and put the rest of the ice cream in the freezers, he sneaked some scoops of

“I’m so, so sorry Louis, I just-I'm sorry” he ruffles his hair, he looks rested which to Louis is surprising because Liam looks like he’s had a good fuck and as much as Louis would like not to get upset about it, a twinge of jealousy still plucks deep in his belly.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah- I- yeah” Liam still looks quite restless though, Louis doesn’t know what to do until Liam coughs and fixes his green plaid and clears his throat

“Everything alright?”

“Uh, I’m, just-”

Taylor is sitting on the counter when Liam grabs Louis’s hand and pulls him over the counter and Louis is on his tiptoes looking at Liam, breathing in; his lips are itching and he’d like to be quicker than Liam but Liam closes his eyes for a second

“I’m a dad” Liam whispers bumping Louis’s forehead and Louis nods with him; there’s something stirring deep in his body and he doesn’t know what to do with it, he pushes himself on his tip toes even more and lets Liam breathe out “God, what am I doing?” Liam shakes his head

“What’s best for you, I reckon” Louis chances quietly, Taylor is still clutching at Liam’s shirt with a curious look in her green eyes and Louis closes his eyes willing his heart to stop beating so hard

“You are—” Liam starts, but Louis kisses him, it’s enough to make the stirring in his belly explode and cause him enough relief and the same amount of giddiness to flow through his body and come out as a long relieved sigh against Liam’s mouth.

Liam’s lips are soft and a bit raw when Louis pulls Liam’s bottom lip between his teeth; Louis knows he bites a lot but Liam’s lips were just made for that, for the biting and pulling and Louis can’t get enough for a long while. Louis shudders when Liam’s hand comes to rest on the nape of his neck; it’s really a long time Louis didn’t kiss anybody, but he knows Liam is it, there wouldn’t be anyone else he’d like to kiss as much as Liam.

 “‘iss tooo” Taylor pats Liam’s arm and Liam laughs a little taking Taylor in his arms and kissing her cheeks until she screeches _stop!_ holding a hand in front of her

“I was saying—” Liam starts but Louis presses a kiss to Liam’s cheek “Hm?”

Louis doesn’t know where his urgency to touch him lies now, now that he _can_ touch Liam. It’s nothing compared to the fleeting looks that he could have continued giving, nothing more, but there is just something that Louis never felt before and it’s just about the need of having someone he likes.

“I have to say, I’m here for a cup of ice cream” Liam smiles kissing Louis’s forehead, his hands feels really nice against Louis’s skin, but he guesses he’ll have time to experiment on that.

“I have plans for the ice cream, right Tay?” Louis grins and laughs when Liam blushes with a seeming horrified face

“Louis, not in front of the baby!”

Louis thinks the _not in front of the baby_ will soon be a usual thing.

**Author's Note:**

> I really don't know why I'm doing this to myself, I should really start my homework.  
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
